This agonizing and lengthy dry spell that dates back to October of last year, when Kasey Kahne won the Bank of America 500 at Lowe’s Motor Speedway, is bound to end at some point in time. Why not this weekend?
Ever since Dodge teams began running the Charger body style in 2005, their results have been wildly inconsistent. In 2006, Dodge won 7 races, six of them belonging to Kahne. Despite his recurrent winning, Kahne nearly missed out on qualifying for the Nextel Cup Chase for the Championship. If you recall, Kahne was the lone Dodge driver in the Chase for the Championship.
In 2007, Dodge teams have been using a more aerodynamically-friendly nose, but the results have remained substandard. However, there have been moments throughout the season when it appeared as if Dodge was on the brink of turning the corner, most notably Chip Ganassi Racing and Penske Racing.
The Penske Racing duo of Kurt Busch and Ryan Newman were impressive at Phoenix and Richmond, both Car of Tomorrow races. As the NASCAR Nextel Cup circuit heads to Darlington Raceway, also known as the Lady In Black, Busch and Newman are expected to prolong their string of consecutive top ten finishes. But of course, if either one of the Penske mates are going to drive into victory lane, they will have to outrun the trio of Hendrick Motorsports drivers- Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson, and Kyle Busch.
Who will win the Dodge Avenger 500 at Darlington? Kurt Busch. As stated before, Dodge is way overdue for a win, and right now, the Penske boys are the Dodge ringleaders, especially in the Car of Tomorrow. Busch has appeared to be just one small step ahead of his teammate Newman thus far, so the nod will go to Busch.
As usual, the Hendrick powered cars will be the favorites. Jeff Gordon has won six races at the 1.336-mile speedway and Johnson has 2 wins, both coming in 2004. Roush Fenway driver Greg Biffle is the two-time defending champion of the Dodge Avenger 500. Nevertheless, Biffle has struggled all season to get his Ford Fusion to hang with the bowtie brigade, so he will be considered as more of a darkhorse instead of a favorite.
Projected Top Ten
1. Kurt Busch
2. Jimmie Johnson
3. Jeff Gordon
5. Ryan Newman
6. Kyle Busch
7. Denny Hamlin
8. Greg Biffle
9. Mark Martin
10. Tony Stewart
Darhorse picks- Jeff Green, Bobby Labonte, Johnny Sauter, Jamie McMurray, Dave Blaney
Who could use a good finish? Kasey Kahne, Elliott Sadler, Ricky Rudd, Dale Jarrett
Friday May 11, 2007
10:30 AM ET- NASCAR Nextel Cup Practice
3:00 PM ET- NASCAR Nextel Cup Bud Pole Qualifying, SPEED
6:30 PM ET- Final NASCAR Nextel Cup Practice (Happy Hour), SPEED
Saturday May 12, 2007
7:00 PM ET- Dodge Avenger 500, at Darlington Raceway, FOX
