Top 3 Surprises after Martinsville Speedway (#nascar)

by Jens Martin

#9 Liberty University Toyota
William Byron
Kyle Busch Motorsports (CWTS) +

William Byron, age 18, hometown of Charlotte, NC, was a NASCAR K&N Pro East Series champion in 2015 (HScott Motorsports). William also started two races in the ARCA Series last year, (Venturini Motorsports) together with his debut race in NASCAR Camping Word Truck Series (CWTS) for Kyle Busch Motorsports (KBM).

Starting in position five in his CWTS debut race at Phoenix 2015, William ended up in position 31 after an early crash. This season, William will drive full-time in CWTS for KBM.

After three races completed in CWTS, William has already impressed the fans with his position three finish this weekend at Martinsville. At Atlanta, the engine failed and ruined William’s day with a position 32 finish. At Daytona, William finished in position 13. So far the stats gives us an avg. start of 11.7 and avg. finish of 16.0.

I’m confident that the statistics will be even better the next races for young William Byron.

#47 Kroger/Butterfinger/Coffeemate Chevrolet
AJ Allmendinger
JTG Dougherty Racing (Sprint Cup) +

AJ Allmendinger, age 34, hometown of Los Gatos, CA, started his career with driving in the CART Series 2004-2006. AJ started 40 times in the CART Series, collecting 5 wins, 14 podiums and 2 poles.

AJ made his NASCAR debut in 2006 in Camping Word Truck Series (CWTS); driving for Bill Davies Racing. AJ ended up in position 13 after starting in position 32. In 2006-2007, AJ drove part-time in NASCAR CWTS and Xfinity Series. In 2006, AJ also drove a NASAR Sprint Cup car for the first time. AJ failed to qualify his Dodge two times that year (Atlanta and Fort Worth).

In 2007, AJ got his real race debut in the Sprint Cup Series at Bristol (Red Bull Racing). However, it was when AJ moved to Richard Petty Motorsports, in 2009, that something started to happened for AJ. He started all the 36 races and collected one top-5 and six top-10.

Driving full-time in Sprint Cup since 2007, AJ had had his “ups and downs”. AJ’s drug abuse suspension in 2012 was creating an enormous media event. After being suspended by NASCAR, many thought maybe this would ruin his career.

But it didn’t. AJ rebounded, followed NASCAR’s drug abuse program and AJ got a second chance with JTG Daughery Racing in 2013. AJ’s best season was in 2014 when he got his only win at Watkins Glen; but he also managed two top-5 and five top-10 finishes. AJ ended up in position 13 in the overall standings that year.

I think many race fans were excited to see when AJ chased Kyle Busch in those last laps at Martinsville Speedway last weekend. AJ didn’t take the checkered flag before Kyle, but he drove majestically for 500 tough “paper clip” laps. I’m impressed by this performance from the #47 team.

#22 Shell Pennzoil Ford
Joey Logano
Team Penske - (Sprint Cup)

Well, as always, there are a few name that pops up in your mind, when thinking about negative surprise from the last weekend races in NASCAR. I could easily pick Clint Bowyer, who has a very weak series start, or Kasey Kahne, for the second time, but that is really even not a surprise anymore. Their performances on the track is way below standard race after race. Instead I changed my mind and picked Joey Logano instead.

Joey Logano, age 26, hometown of Middletown, VT, is a NASCAR K&N Pro Series East champion in 2007. Joey did four starts in the ARCA Racing Series in 2008-2009 (2 wins, 4 top-5). Then he did his NASCAR Camping Word Truck Series (CWTS) debut at Phoenix in 2008.

Joey quickly moved up the NASCAR ladder and started racing in the Xfinity Series in 2008 for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR). Joey had driven part-time in Xfinity Series and full-time Sprint Cup for JGR 2008-2012 and for Team Penske from 2013 until now.

The stats are impressing from the Xfinity Series with 147 races started; 25 wins, 78 top-5, 118 top 10 and 30 poles. Joey made his Sprint Cup debut in 2008 at Loudon, ended up in position 32 with the #96 Toyota (JGR).

Since joining Team Penske in 2013, Joey’s stats are very impressing. His overall rank in Sprint Cup is 2013: 8, 2014: 4, 2015: 6. Total career stats in Sprint Cup in 261 races; 14 wins, 67 top-5, 113 top-10 and 15 poles so far.

Unfortunately, after the Martinsville Race last weekend, team #22 was a negative surprise in my book. Joey started at the pole position and then everything looked okay in the beginning of the race. But something happened to the #22 Ford, perhaps the “dirty air” did something or the adjustments from crew chief Todd Gordon was not the right ones.

I was expecting a later comeback in the race – as teammate Brad Keselowski did, but nothing happened. Joey managed to drive up to position 11 in the end and led 21 of total 500 laps. I’m not impressed with that. I’m expected a lot more from Joey at a track like Martinsville when starting at the pole. Let’s see if this was a one-time slump from team #22.

Photo Credit: 3 x Headshots Photos from NASCAR Media 

Top-3 Surprises after Auto Club Speedway (#nascar)

by Jens Martin,

#11 Leaffilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet, Blake Koch
Kaulig Racing (Xfinity Series) +

Blake Koch, age 30, did his first start in NASCAR K&N Pro Series West in 2008. The following year, Blake raced full-time in K&N Series together with a few starts in the Xfinity Series.

After getting enough experience, Blake started to race full-time for MacDonald Motorsports in 2011 (Xfinity Series). Blake ended up in position 18 in the overall standings that season.

After driving for various underfunded teams in 2012-2014, Blake manage to start all 33 races in 2015 for TriStar Motorsports and the statistics are telling us as a solid season for car #8 – average start 24.5 and average finish 24.5. Pretty unusual with exactly same start/finish statistics.

In 2016 season, Blake was hired full-time for the new and interesting Xfinity Series team – Kaulig Racing. It is the sponsor, Leaffilter Gutter Protection’s owner Matt Kaulig who has formed this new race team. Kaulig Racing has technical alliance with Richard Childress Racing. Crew chief is Chris Rice, who has long experience in NASCAR racing.

Blake has started 152 times in the Xfinity Series (2009-2016) and including this season, he has an average start of 27.4 and average finish of 28.5. This season start with Kaulig Racing, Blake earned his first career top-10 finish at Daytona. With an average finish of 16.6 in five races, Blake Koch is finally on the right track. I think there could be more top-10 finishes for this new race team.

#44 Albertsons Co./White Tail Ford, Brian Scott
Richard Petty Motorsports (Sprint Cup Series) + 

Brian Scott, age 28, is racing his first full-time season in the Sprint Cup Series for Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM). As so many other drivers, Brian began his career in the ARCA Racing Series (part-time) together with part-time racing in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series (CWTS) in 2007.

After driving two full seasons in CWTS, Brian moved up a to drive in NASCAR Xfinity Series full-time in 2010 (Braun Motorsports). Moving over to race for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) in 2011-2012, his results, in the Xfinity Series, improved step by step with two top-5 and eleven top-10 (2012).

In 2013, Brian switched to Richard Childress Racing (RCR) and stayed there for three full seasons with good results. Brian had never got that win (yet), but his overall ranking of 8 (2011), 9 (2012), 7 (2013), 4 (2014) and 8 (2015) shows us a consistent driver – if given the right car.

Brian’s first race in Sprint Cup was at Charlotte 2013 for RCR, driving the #33 car. Brian ended up in position 27 that day. Brian started ten races for RCR last season in Sprint Cup. This season, Brian got a full-time seat in Richard Petty Motorsports #44 Ford. Brian’s first four races finishes was what we could expect from the #44 team (24, 31, 27, 27) but the last race at Auto Club Speedway was a breakthrough for Brian and his team.

Crew chief Chris Heroy was calling the right shots all day long and Brian’s driving, at the hard beaten track, was impressing. I think this finish will boost team #44 and perhaps we will see a top-10 finish as well this season.

#16 Ford Ecoboost Ford, Greg Biffle
Rousch Fenway Racing (Sprint Cup Series) – 

If I haven’t picked Kasey Kahne last week, he would easily have made it for this week. A few drivers are dangerously close to make it to the negative list week after week. After the Auto Club 400 race, I had to pick the #16 car. Greg Biffle, age 46, is a veteran driver who started to race as a Sprint Cup full-time driver in 2003.

Driving for Jack Rousch in his entirely career, Greg have been successful in the past. Up to now he has raced 479 times (Sprint Cup) and earned 19 wins, 91 top-5, 172 top-10 and 12 poles. His careers best overall ranking was in 2005 with a runner-up position.

Greg also raced in the Xfinity Series 1996-2010 (Champion in 2002) and Camping World Truck Series 1998-2004 (Champion 2000). But the time for success seems to be in the past for Greg Biffle.

The last win came in 2013 (Michigan) and the results have declined the recent years. Last season, there were only three top-5 and four top-10 finishes with an average finish of 20.0. This is the worst avg. finish in Greg’s career as a full-time driver.

This season, Greg’s long time crew chief Matt Puccia was replaced with Brian Pattie, but so for nothing has happened. The #16 car is still hanging out in the back of the field and sometimes I even wonder if the #16 is on the track or not. With five races complete so far, Greg has his best finish at Atlanta (P13) and at Auto Club Speedway his engine failed and he finished in position 37. Greg’s average finish after five races is 25.0.

The sun doesn’t seem to shine on the #16 team anymore. Right now, Greg Biffle’s overall ranking is 27. Last season he ended up in position 20. I think this may be Greg’s last season in Sprint Cup Series.

Photo Credit: 3 x Headshots Photos from NASCAR Media

Top 3 Surprises after Phoenix International Raceway (#nascar)

by Jens Martin,

The “Top-3 Surprises” list will from now on include both positive and negative driver performance from the last race weekend. A “+” indicates positive and “- “ indicates negative performance below.

#48 DC Solar Chevrolet, Brennan Poole
Chip Ganassi Racing (Xfinity Series) (+)

Brennan Poole, age twenty-five, is a six-time winner in the ARCA Racing Series (2011-2014). Brennan was sharing the seat in the #42 car with another Chip Ganassi driver, Kyle Larson last season. Brennan started seventeen races last season in the Xfinity Series and received two top-10, an avg. start of 16.6 and avg. finish of 18.6. Brennan’s best finish, position 9, was at Las Vegas after starting position sixteen. That was Brennan’s debut race in the Xfinity Series.

Brennan has only made one start in the Camping World Truck Series and that was also at Las Vegas last season (GMS Racing – P11). Brennan is still lacking race experience from Sprint Cup, but he was part of Jamie McMurray’s (Chip Ganassi) team last year as an observer.

This year, Brennan got a full-time ride with the new #48 team with Chad Norris as crew chief. After four races this season, Brennan has one top-10 finish with an avg. start of 11.5 and avg. finish of 15.5.

The Daytona finish (P27) is taking the average finish statistics down a little, but after Daytona, it has been strong solid finishes all the way. I have also noticed that the #48 car is getting its share of valuable “TV-time” in the FOX broadcast, via the so called “DC-Solar onboard” camera. Good for Chip Ganassi and off-course for the sponsor. I think we will see more top-10’s from Brennan Poole this season.

#83 Schluter Systems Toyota, Matt DiBenedetto
BK Racing (Sprint Cup Series) (+)

Matt Dibenedetto, age twenty-four, made his debut, not in the Truck Series, but in the Xfinity Series in 2009 at the age of seventeen. Matt only started once in 2009 for Joe Gibbs Racing, driving the #20 car and received a good position fourteen finish.

Not bad for a seventeen-year-old driver in his first NASCAR race ever. After 2009, there was limited race time for Matt. In 2011, he had to go back to race in the K&N Pro East Series and a few ARCA starts as well. Then in 2014, Matt joined The Motorsports Group, who then raced in the Xfinity Series. Matt start-and-parked the #46 car for twelve races and drove the #40 car for the remainder of that season with a position eleven highlight at Elkhart Lake.

In 2015, Matt joined BK Racing and made his Sprint Cup racing debut the same year. Driving full-time in 2015, Matt started thirty-three of thirty-six races with two DNQ. The statistics is giving us a start average of 36.5 and a finish average of 32.0, with a position eighteen finish at Talladega as a highlight that year.

In 2016, BK Racing bought equipment from recently closed downed Michael Walltrip Racing (MWR), including some of the MWR personnel. After a rough start with a crash at Daytona 500 (in car #93), Matt with his team crew chief Gene Nead, have rebounded well. They managed to get their best finish of the season last weekend in Phoenix, ending up only one lap behind in position twenty, after starting in position twenty-three. It seems that BK Racing is trying to, with their full-time starting cars #83 and #23, be a top-30 team once more. I think they got a shot at least.

#5 Great Clips Chevrolet, Kasey Kahne
Hendrick Motorsports (Sprint Cup Series) (-)

Kasey Kahne, age 36, is a seventeen-time winner in Sprint Cup Series. Kahne has started 436 times in Sprint Cup in thirteen years and earned 86 top-5, 157 top-10 and 27 poles. His best year was in 2012 when he finished fourth in the overall standings.

Kasey has also started part-time in the Xfinity Series since 2002 with a good portion of success there as well. Winning his first ever Sprint Cup race in 2005 at Richmond with a Dodge Charger, the road of success was a fact.

Taking over Mark Martin’s #5 car in 2012 at Hendrick Motorsports, the expectations were high on Kasey and he delivered his best overall finish that year (P4). After two acceptable seasons in 2013-2014 (Rank 12 and 15 overall), Kasey’s results started slowly to decline.

His last win was in Atlanta, 2014. In 2015 season, Kasey only received three top-5 finishes with an average start of 14.9 and an average finish of 18.1. Kasey ended up in position 18 in the overall ranking and that cannot be acceptable when driving for Rick Hendrick.

I thought the 2016 season would be a rebound for the #5 team. I also thought that Kasey and his crew chief Keith Rodden would come out strong and hungry and really show that they have what it takes.

However, after four starts so far, the avg. start is 14.0 and the avg. finish is poorly 17.0 - with one top-10 at Las Vegas. No laps led so far and in Atlanta and Phoenix the #5 car was not even on the lead lap at the finish. Right now, the overall ranking for Kasey is position 14.

It will be interesting to see if this trend will continue or will the team turn things around?

Photo Credit: 3 x Headshots Photos from NASCAR Media 

Top 3 Positive NASCAR Surprises After Las Vegas Motor Speedway

New week and new positive surprises. 

by Jens Martin

#‎CrownHeroes‬, J From now on, the top 3 surprises list will include all three NASCAR Series; Camping World Truck Series, Xfinity Series and Sprint Cup Series.

#20 Interstate Batteries Toyota, Erik Jones,
Joe Gibbs Racing (Xfinity Series)

Erik Jones, age 20, a Camping World Truck Series champion (2015), moved up to full-time racing in the Xfinity Series this season. Erik, is, considering his young age, not a stranger to drive in higher series in NASCAR. He started 23 races in the Xfinity Series last season, collecting two wins, 13 top- five, 17 top-ten and three poles.

Erik also got some extra experience with three starts in Sprint Cup Series last season for Joe Gibbs Racing, driving the #18 car once and the #20 car twice (total avg. finish 23.7). Erik started his career in ARCA Racing Series 2012 (10 starts) and he is the 2012-2013 Snowball Derby winner.

At Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Erik was in a “rollercoaster” race. Starting in front row (P2), Erik had a good momentum in the beginning of the race. After an incredible two penalties (!) for driving too fast on pit road, the race appeared to slip away for the 20 team.

Erik Jones wouldn’t accept this and managed to do a remarkable comeback with excellent driving and good pit calls from crew chief Christopher Gabehart. Erik even managed to pass Sprint Cup drivers Chase Elliott (P4) and Austin Dillon (P5) along the way. That was really remarkable driving and Erik Jones has a rare talent that we race fans don’t see very often these days.

#33 Thunder Coal Chevrolet, Brandon Jones,
Richard Childress Racing (Xfinity Series)

Brandon Jones, age 19, has taken a large step in his NASCAR career after moving up to full-time racing in the Xfinity Series. Brandon started 17 of 23 races with the #33 truck in Camping World Truck Series last season for GMS Racing. The remaining six races with the #33 truck was piloted by the two Dillon brothers (Austin & Ty).

Moving over to Richard Childress Racing (RCR), Brandon received five starts last season in the Xfinity Series with good results – one top-five and two top-10 finishes and an average finish of 15.0.

Brandon started his first K&N Pro Series East race in 2012 at the age of 15! He finished in position 14 in his debut race. At the age of 16, Brandon started three truck races for Turner Scott Motorsports (closed down 2014) with a position 19 finish as a highlight.

After three starts in his rookie season (Xfinity Series), Brandon has a finish of P7, P11, and latest in Vegas, P6. Brandon’s statistics are impressing after three races with an average start of 10.3 and an average finish of 8.0. Crew chief Mike Hillman Jr. is handling his young talented driver just the right way. It will be interesting to follow Brandon Jones this season.

Can he continue his solid finishes? I personally think so.

#21 Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire Ford, Ryan Blaney,
Wood Brothers (Sprint Cup Series)

Ryan Blaney, age 22, is finally driving full-time in NASCAR for legendary Wood Brothers. After driving full-time in Camping World Truck Series 2013-2014 (Brad Keselowski Racing), in which Ryan ended up in position six (2013) and position two (2014) in the final standings; he went back to part-time racing in the Xfinity Series (Team Penske) and Sprint Cup Series (Wood Brothers) in 2015.

Last season in Sprint Cup Series, Ryan started 16 times and collected one top-5 and two top-10 finishes. In the Xfinity Series 2015, the statistics were better with 13 starts; two wins, nine top-5 and ten top-10 finishes.

While Wood Brothers didn’t get a charter for this season in Sprint Cup, but I think they can manage it anyway. They are, after all, a very experienced race team. After the first two races in Wood Brothers “comeback” - Ryan finished in position 19 (Daytona) and 25 (Atlanta).

At Las Vegas, they really hit the mark with a position 6 finish. Crew chief Jeremy Bullins made the right calls down on pit road and Ryan drove that legendary #21 car up in top-10 for long runs. I think that’s impressing for a single car team and I also think many NASCAR fans were pleased to see the classic paint scheme of Ryan’s car up there in the mix, competing against NASCAR’s strongest teams. I don’t think this will be the last time.

Photos NASCAR Media

Top Three #NASCAR Positive Sprint Cup Surprises After Atlanta

By: Jens Martin

#17 Ford, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Roush Fenway Racing

 Ricky Stenhouse Jr, age 28, a double Xfinity Series champion in 2011-2012, is trying hard to find his rhythm in Sprint Cup Series. After two subsequent disappointing seasons in Sprint Cup (2014-2015) with declining stats (two top-five total), his seat in the 17 car must be in doubt. He needs the 2016 season to be a positive one with better results, which means more top-tens and a few more top-fives. Last season, Ricky’s average finish was 24.3 and that is not impressing at all.

At Daytona, Ricky started in position 19 and ended up in P22. That’s acceptable result. At Atlanta, Ricky got his first top 10 finish (P10) after starting from position five. The no.17 car was hanging on pretty good at the Atlanta race and both Austin Dillon (P11) and Joey Logano (P12) were held behind him.

Can this result give Ricky and the team a needed boost at Las Vegas?

#13 Chevrolet, Casey Mears, Germain Racing

Casey Mears, age 38, is a full-time driver in Sprint Cup since 2003. Prior to 2003, Casey had one full-time season in the Xfinity Series (2002) which he ended up in 21st place. Casey has also a background as an open-wheel driver with full-time Indy Lights Series (1997-2000) campaigns and part-time IndyCar Series involvement in 2001 (1 win, 5 podiums in 12 races).

His best year in Sprint Cup was in 2007 when Casey collected 1 Win, 5 top-five, 10 top-ten and 1 pole. Unfortunately, Casey lost his ride at Hendricks Motorsports in 2008. Since 2010, he has been driving for Germain Racing. The statistics for Casey in 2013-2015 seasons shows us a solid team with an average finish of 24.2 (2013), 22.3 (2014) and 23.1 (2015). Keep in mind that Germain Racing is a one-car team with lesser funds.

At Atlanta, Casey has an average Sprint Cup career finish of 21.8. This season race at Atlanta ended up in position 14. We have to go back to 2008 season for a better result (P12 – Hendrick Motorsports).

Las Vegas is coming up next and that is perhaps not Casey’s favorite track according to the statistics (with German Racing) but perhaps it’s time to turn the statistics around?

#24 Chevrolet, Chase Elliot, Hendrick Motorsports

Chase Elliot, age 20, made his second start in the legendary 24 car this season. Chase, the son of Bill Elliott (2015 Hall of Fame inductee) has big shoes to fill after Jeff Gordon. As Ricky Stenhouse Jr, Chase is also an Xfinity Series champion (2014) and runner-up in 2015 season. His statistics from Xfinity Series and lower series are very impressive. Let’s see if Chase can get a good rookie season with Hendrick Motorsports. He really has a world-class team around him to “seal the deal.”

Chase got five “test” races in the 25 car last season with Kenny Francis as Crew Chief (Henrick Motorsports). This races resulted an average start of 24.2 and an average finish of 26.2 with one DNF. Valuable lessons were made under those five races.

This season, Chase has Jeff Gordon’s crew chief of Alan Gustavson at the helm. Starting from pole at Daytona, Chase was involved in an accident and ended up in position 37. At Atlanta, the figures were reversed. Starting from position 24, Chase drove the 24 car all the way up to position 8.

The future is looking bright for young Chase Elliott.

Photo credit: NASCAR via Getty Images

2016-02-29

Top 3 Positive Sprint Cup Surprises After Daytona 500

By Jens Martin

#7 Chevrolet, Regan Smith
Tommy Baldwin Racing

Regan Smith, age 32, was driving full-time in the Xfinity Series prior to 2016 season (2013-2015). He has also driven full-time in Sprint Cup before, but never really got that ”lucky break” to stay consistent with his race results.

Career highlights happened in 2011, when Regan collected his only win in Sprint Cup together with two top-five and five top-ten finishes. Regan has raced at Daytona 13 times in his career with three top-five and five top-ten finishes as highlights.

In the 2016 Daytona 500, Regan made his Sprint Cup “comeback” at from position twenty-seven on the starting grid with a new team (Tommy Baldwin Racing-TBR) and ended up P8. That is a very impressing team debut for Regan Smith. Perhaps he can get solid season again?

#42 Chevrolet, Kyle Larson
Chip Ganassi Racing w/FS

Kyle Larson, age 23, started his 2016 Sprint Cup season in a positive way with a seventh place finish at Daytona 500. Starting from position fourteen, young Kyle was in the forward pack for most of the 200 laps.

Kyle started his full career season 2014 in Sprint Cup with very impressing stats (eight top-five, and seventeen top-tens). Unfortunately, his 2015 stats declined somewhat (two top-five and only ten top-tens). Further his average finishes were lower comparing to the starts (S:13.3, F: 19.3).

That’s perfectly normal and I think Kyle is settled in to be a full-time Sprint Cup driver. We are all waiting for Kyle’s first checkered flag and I think he could get it this season.

#59 (95) Chevrolet, Michael McDowell
Circle Sport-Leavine Family Racing 

Michael McDowell, age 31, normally drives part-time In Sprint Cup and has done so since 2014. Now, with the newly merged race team Circle Sport –Leavine Family Racing, the plan is to run full-time in car #59 and #95, splitting the seat with Ty Dillon.

Starting the Daytona 500 in P39 (!), Michael drove his Chevrolet hard all 200 laps and got a impressing fifteen place finish. Only one-time before in his career has Michael ended up with a better Daytona 500 finish and that was a P9 finish in 2013, driving for Phil Parsons Racing.

I like what I see in this new merged team and I’m thinking maybe this season can be a jump forward for Michael McDowell’s career.

Photos: NASCAR Media

Never Give Up Racing: A Portrait of NASCAR Driver/Owner Mike Harmon

By Jens Martin

It's time to start up a new article series here at PTR. I hope that you have read the introduction in a previously published article "Everything that Glitters is not Gold in NASCAR". As mentioned, this series will focus on Xfinity teams that normally finish in lower part of the standings; teams who are underfunded with drivers that sometimes have passed their prime time in the media's spotlight. It's time to give them a little focus also - they deserve it.

First out in this series is Mike Harmon, driver of #74 Dodge Challenger for Mike Harmon Racing. Mike Joseph Harmon, born January 24, 1958 (age 57) in Birmingport, Alabama made his NASCAR Busch Series debut in 1996 driving the #24 MedPartners Chevrolet at South Port Speedway.

Harmon finished his debut race in P31 with a transmission failure. Mike was well known by many fans, long before his NASCAR debut, in various short track racing, with an impressing 300 career wins. People who have worked with Mike in the ARCA series said "he is probably the most focused individual I've ever met". A very talented driver, especially on the short track, that really never got the chance to drive with good equipment.

Mike Harmon in 2008
(SturrockNY21 (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Mike's Busch debut season 1996 ended up with sponsorship problems. The stats for 7 races: 792 of 1467 laps completed (54%), Avg. start: 26.4, Avg. finish: 32.7, DNF: 4. After losing his ride, Mike returned (part-time 1991-1996) to drive full season in Slim-Jim All-Pro Series (NASCAR Southeast Series) in 1997. Started all 20 races 1997, Mike completed 87% of all laps, led 140 laps, 8 top-5, 9 top-10 and finished in 8th position in the ranking.

After a good season in 1997, the next one was not as good. With 11 starts and 6 DNF due to failure in handling, engine, oil leak and crash, Mike left this series, joining the ARCA Series instead 1998-2001. Only starting 2 times in 1998-1999, he started 15 races in 2000 (for Wayne Peterson Racing) with 1 top-5, 2 top-10, 8 DNF and 58.6 % laps completed.

Returning to Busch Series (Xfinity) in 2001, this time driving for Mixon Motorsports for 15 starts, the #44 car only finished 1 race (P28) that season (27.4% laps completed). Continuing with Mixon Motorsports in 2002, the story remains the same; 25 starts and 21 DNF. Best finish that year - P22 (started 41) at Daytona. In 2003, Mike started 32 times, a career high for this series again with Mixon Motorsports. 15 DNF, Avg. start: 35.0, Avg. finish: 31.3, 61.8% completed laps and 1 top-20 as best finish. With a new team partner in Mixon Motorsports (GIC - Global Industrial Contractors), Mike was released from his ride in 2004, starting 7 times that year.

Harmon, together with Oostlander Racing, bought some assets from Innovative Motorsports and tried a couple of starts without success.




Mike Harmon is also famous for his terrible Bristol practice crash in August 2002. Splitting his #44 car in half, Mike miraculous walked away unharmed. In 2003, Mike got the chance to drive a Sprint Cup car at Daytona but failed to qualify his #78 Chevrolet (owned by Anthony Desmond) in Gatorade 125 race 1.

After not making it work in 2004 (Busch Series), Mike headed back to drive full season in ARCA Series 2005 (Oostlander Racing), collecting 4 top-10 finishes. Mike also made a few "start-and-park" appearances/year in NASCAR Camping World Truck Series 2001-2009 and in 2009 with his on #42 truck. Continuing driving in the ARCA Series full time to 2008, Mike tried a comeback in the Busch Series in 2007, starting 7 times for Richardson-Netzloff Racing. This attempt ended up with 7 DNF. Jennfier Jo Cobb took over the wheel later in that season. In 2008, Mike tried once more in the Nationwide Series (former Busch Series), this time with his own team driving the #84 Chevrolet. He qualified for 11 starts and ended up with 10 DNF but collecting his best result ever with a P17 finish at Talladega (starting P43).

Harmon in CFR No. 84
(Mike Kalasnik CC BY-SA 2.0)

In 2009, Mike continued driving his #84 Chevrolet in the Nationwide Series, but also drove the #07 Chevrolet for SK Motorsports that year.

He managed to qualify 10 times total that season. The stats showing Avg.start: 38.1, Avg.finish: 33.1, 58.1% laps finished, 6 DNF. Average finish is better than the starting position this year, showing that if the car holds up, Mike is able to advance a few positions.

In 2010, Mike took a year off from racing in Nationwide Series and drove part-time (15 starts - 12 DNF) in Camping World Truck Series for Lafferty Motorsports.

Mike started with his own team in 2011 (Mike Harmon Racing) in both Nationwide (14/25 races) and Truck Series (7/25 races) with the #74 car (both series). The stats from 2011 season are the same, many DNF and few completed laps. In 2012, the story was the same as the year before. "Start and park" for the most of the season. But the team survived and in 2013 season something changed for Mike Harmon Racing. Instead of competing in the most of the races, Mike started 7 of them (2 DNQ) and completed 79.8% of all the laps - the best stats ever. Also, Avg. start: 34.1, Avg. finish: 29.0 and finished P17 (started P27) at Daytona (120/120 laps) with leading a lap there. Even with his truck team, the completed lap stats went up to 36.3% in 12 starts.

Jennifer Jo Cobb

When Mike finally got some positive results from his long racing career, he somehow managed to get himself arrested on May 15, 2013, accused of stealing a hauler and other racing equipment from Jennifer Jo Cobb. Although first denying the accusations, the police found two Nationwide and five Camping World Truck Series trucks in Harmon's garage which allegedly belonging to Cobb. An arrest warrant was issued and Mike turn himself in to the police on June 16. Cobb demanded the charges to be dropped in October. Cobb's request was approved.

Trying to restart in the 2014 season, the stats from 2013 were not to be found this year. Starting more races costs more money for a team owner. Mike managed sixteen starts (4 DNQ) and thirteen DNF with 38.2% completed laps ratio. Best results was a P28 finish at Talladega. Mike handed over the wheel of the #74 Dodge Challenger (switched to Dodge full time in 2014) under his owner/driver years to, for example, Carl Long who started 7 times in 2013 and Kevin Lepage, who started 8 times in 2014.

How is it going for Mike Harmon Racing in 2015 season then? Well, the stats are looking better than 2014. Driving the #74 Dodge full-time by himself, Mike has managed qualify for 16 of 18 Xfinity Series races with 1859 laps of 2971 laps total completed (62.6%) is showing that the team is going in the right direction. Avg. start: 36.8, Avg. finish: 33.2, 9 DNF, best finish at Daytona (P24). Also, looking into the stats real deep, you can see that the MHR intentions is to run full races more and more. In Camping World Truck Series, Mike have left the driver seat in the #74 Chevrolet to young Jordan Anderson with good results so far (82.2% completed laps).

The DNF is still too high but bare in mind that Dodge is a "newcomer" in NASCAR and with a week-to-week sponsorship it's hard to put a competitive car in the Xfinity Series. The cost is enormous. Few series cost so much to race in as the NASCAR world, even down to ARCA series level. Having one Xfinity team and one CWTS team running afloat is not an easy business. Its very, very hard to do.

With all that Mike Harmon has been through in his long career, he never got the chance to show his talent with a fast race car/well-funded team. I personally think it's amazing that he fights to drive a race car year after year. Mike Harmon is race driver who loves racing - what more do you need?

Perhaps you will think different about Mike Harmon next time you watch an Xfinity race. Maybe not. It’s up to you. For me, I will think about that black #74 Dodge Challenger a bit more.

Everything that Glitters is not #NASCAR Gold Sometimes It Is Green

By Jens Martin

#10 of NASCAR Xfinity Driver Jeff Green, short on sponsorship

Something hit me when I watched the NASCAR Xfinity race from New Hampshire this July. The television producers always focus on the top-ten, or at most the top-twenty drivers. Well, I suppose that's normal, the viewer wants to see racing from top of the field; but sometimes a race fan actually wants to see the back of the field as well. Who are the teams and drivers from, for example, position 30 and below?

Normally, these teams are fighting hard just to make it to the start grid. With low budgets and low finances, they are NASCAR's backside that never gets the attention they deserves. In these teams, there are no 'Sprint Cup ringers' to fill the driving seat. It’s not unusual that the driver is the owner/manager and all other positions that normally requires additional personnel. The cost to running a NASCAR team is enormous. I have heard figures of ~100 000 Euro (~108 467 USD) per race and team, and then we talking smaller teams and race classes.

Checking the price money for last Xfinity race at NH, TriStar Motorsports Toyota #19 with Jeff Green, earned 9,234 USD with his P40 spot. The #19 car normally drives 2-3 laps every time it manages to qualify to an Xfinity race and its most common reported problem is "vibration." They are a classic "start and park" team, even though officially NASCAR doesn’t want to use that expression anymore.



Green - 2000 Xfinity Champ

Green was the Xfinity (Busch) series champion in 2000 with a margin of 616 points to runner-up Jason Keller (PPC racing). This margin was the largest in series history until 2006. In those days, Green battled hard against Dale Earnhardt Jr., Matt Kenseth and Jimmie Johnson for example.

Today, the times have changed. Jeff, age 53, must have the most last position record in Xfinity series (without checking). Does this make Green/TriStar Motorsports a bad team? Who are we to judge them?

The above example is perhaps the most extreme of them all, but I hope you get the picture.

With this said, I have noticed that, for example, 'social media' is quick to judge small teams and drivers in a negative way. Almost making fun of them. For me, they have the same right to compete at the track as other "star drivers" or well-funded teams. Without the small teams, the track would look empty and the race wouldn't be the same.

My goal is to make a small 'series' here at PTR blog about the Xfinity drivers/teams that normally stands outside the Media’s spotlight and attention.

I hope you readers will appreciate the idea.

 

Photo Credit - NASCAR.com