Sofa Sideline – Hot Time in the Desert
Jeff Burton wins the Checker Auto Parts
500 at Phoenix International Raceway! This team has been struggling for most of
the year, but lately appears to be back in winning form. After gaining the lead
on lap 278 from Mike Wallace, Burton had an almost three second lead at the end
of the race. It’s good to see him finally turning this season around, and
talking about keeping the momentum going. The weekend was a big success for
Roush Racing having captured victories In the Craftsman Truck and Busch races as
well. Congratulations are in order for a job well done!
Mike Wallace managed to hang on to the
second place spot as he and Ricky Rudd raced to the finish line. Wallace came
across the line just slightly ahead of Rudd, but from the smile on his face at
the end of the race, he was pretty excited about this finish. Mike Wallace has
to be commended for the great job he’s done in the number 12 car since taking
over that ride. It kind of makes you wonder if all the controversy surrounding
Jeremy Mayfield was brought on by Jeremy himself. This car and crew seems to be
doing just fine without him (actually better). Hmmm…????
Had the race not been marred by tire
problems, we might even have seen a finish that read Wallace, Wallace &
Wallace. All in all there were seven cautions brought on by problems with the
right front tire. Rusty Wallace led 91 laps of the race and appeared to be the
fastest car out there, but after running over some debris, had to overcome a one
lap deficit caused by a green flag pit stop for the blown tire, and wound up
finishing 15th. As the day wore on it, the handling got worse for
many of the cars, and the difficulty passing made it impossible for Rusty to
make up any more ground than he already had. Kenny Wallace also did a great job,
coming back from two blown tires to finish 11th.
Sterling Marlin and Bobby Hamilton both
had their chances for a win "blown out" early in the race, when their
right front tire went down causing both these drivers to brush the wall and
sustain damage. Both Marlin and Hamilton spent the reset of the race just riding
around to gain as many points as they could under the circumstances. All in all
there were seven cautions brought on by tire problems. Others having trouble
were; Michael Waltrip, Kenny Schrader (2 times as well), and Casey Atwood.
Atwood started on the pole, leading the race, and appearing to have a chance for
a great finish, when he blew the right front. Atwood finished 14th
overall.
Goodyear made an announcement during the
race and said that the combination of unseasonably warm weather and certain car
setups, not too mention the debris the track, was likely what caused the
problems. The competitors also concurred that for the most part, the tire
problems were their fault. With a 30 degree difference in temperature from last
year, the tires were especially sensitive to minimal air pressure adjustments.
Well, we have to take their word for it, but it looked bad from the other side
of the fence.
Jeff Gordon finished a respectable sixth,
and is pretty much set to win the championship. What is fun to watch is what’s
going on behind him. There’s less than a hundred points between Ricky Rudd and
Tony Stewart, and thirty-five points separate Dale Jarrett from Sterling Marlin.
Just slightly over one hundred points separate seventh place, Dale Earnhardt
Jr., and tenth place Jeff Burton. At least it gives us something to pay
attention too!
Other notes:
Greg Biffle – what a weekend for him! He
won the Craftsman Truck Series Race and then went on to win the Busch Series
Outback Steakhouse 200 on Saturday. Biffle had an almost four second lead, but a
late race red flag restart eliminated that advantage. Biffle got a heck of a
jump on the restart over Jeff Green, opening up enough of a lead to win the race
easily. Green finished second, with Kevin Harvick finishing third.
Just want to say hello to Steve Park. We
occasionally read stories about how well he’s doing and that’s so good to
hear. We all just want you to know we’re thinking of you and can’t want to
see you back on the racetrack.
I do have to comment on one thing. The
first time we saw Kim Burton’s excitement, hysteria (whatever you want to call
it), it was cute. But it’s gotten old, fast. Take note; we do not need to have
a picture on picture view of the race with Mrs. Burton in the corner of our TV.
Granted she gets excited, and is proud, but tell me what driver’s wife or
girlfriend isn’t. Truth be known, I’ve done some substantial pacing around
the living room when it looks like Bobby’s going to win (well not much this
year). But does anybody really care to see that? No offense, but nahhhh…we
just want to watch the race. So, enough already!
It’s off to the Rock this weekend in
Rockingham, North Carolina for what appears to be a spectacular weekend –
sunny and temps in the low 70’s. It should be a great weekend — hope to see
you there!
That’s it for now.