| N'Wide: Stewart wins at Darlington | Friday 5/9, 9:07 PM CT |
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Tony Stewart may not have won at Darlington in the Cup series, but now he has a victory in Nationwide competition.
Our View: A couple of weeks ago, he was unable to back up his first Talladega Nationwide victory with a first Cup victory, but he will look to do better in the Dodge Challenger 500. |
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| N'Wide: Ky Busch crashes at Darlington | Friday 5/9, 8:06 PM CT |
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Kyle Busch wrecked himself on lap 103 of the Diamond Hill Plywood 200, underscoring the risk of starting "rowdy drivers" at Darlington.
Our View: His accident is notable not only because we predicted it, but because it came after he made a very risky three-wide move entering the corner. This behavior also makes him a dangerous driver to start on Saturday night. |
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| Sauter, Green go home | Friday 5/9, 5:39 PM CT |
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Johnny Sauter and Jeff Green are the two drivers going home this week, having failed to be one of the eight fastest "go-or-go-home" drivers.
Our View: Sauter is in a backup car, while Green is in a lightly funded car that has had difficulty making races. |
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| Biffle wins Darlington pole | Friday 5/9, 5:37 PM CT |
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Greg Biffle won the pole for the Dodge Challenger 500 and set a new track record of 179.442 mph.
Our View: Starting up front is extremely important on this track, and Biffle has won two of the last three events after starting near the front. |
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| Kahne crashes in quals | Friday 5/9, 5:11 PM CT |
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Kasey Kahne was talking to himself before running his lap and finally decided to go for the pole. He had a top-five run going until he crashed during his time trial lap.
Our View: It is hard to win from the back of the pack, and Kahne is going to have a tough time breaking the top 10 at Darlington for the first time in three years. |
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| N'Wide: Hamlin goes home | Friday 5/9, 3:51 PM CT |
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Denny Hamlin had a shot at the pole for the Diamond Hill Plywood 200, but instead he took a shot at the wall. He crashed on his first lap and will head home in a car that was required to qualify on time.
Our View: This is one of the reasons why fantasy owners can't set their roster until after qualification. Hamlin would have been one of the favorites to win. |
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| N'Wide: Edwards wins Darlington pole | Friday 5/9, 3:49 PM CT |
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Carl Edwards outlasted 45 drivers to win the pole for the Diamond Hill Plywood 200.
Our View: Track position is critical at Darlington, and with a lot of inexperience in this field, the back of the pack is going to be treacherous. Edwards gets to start ahead of the competition. |
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| Kahne wins Happy Hour | Friday 5/9, 2:10 PM CT |
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Kasey Kahne put only eight laps on his Dodge in Happy Hour, but he posted the quickest average speed of 177.343 mph.
Our View: His biggest concern, however, may be the 129 laps he put on his engine in the first three sessions. That was the most of all drivers to that point, and he runs the risk of straining his powerplant. |
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| Hamlin fastest in Happy Hour | Friday 5/9, 2:08 PM CT |
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Denny Hamlin posted the single fastest lap in Happy Hour from Darlington with a speed of 179.651 mph.
Our View: Hamlin seems to have composed himself after getting a hard Darlington stripe in the morning and he is still a good value for Sunday. |
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| R Gordon crashes in Happy Hour | Friday 5/9, 2:03 PM CT |
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At exactly the same time Paul Menard was crashing on one end of the track, Robby Gordon also scraped along the wall. He will probably not have to roll out a backup although he tore the back panel off his Dodge.
Our View: And this—folks—is practice. Imagine what the race is going to look like. |
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| Menard crashes in Happy Hour | Friday 5/9, 2:00 PM CT |
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Paul Menard crashed his Chevrolet in Happy Hour practice and he will be the fifth driver to roll out a backup car.
Our View: Menard's contact came moments after Jimmie Johnson spun for his second time on Friday. With only moments remaining, drivers are getting desperate. |
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| Sorenson crashes in Happy Hour | Friday 5/9, 1:35 PM CT |
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Reed Sorenson will be the fourth driver to roll out a backup car. He missed the exit of turn two and slammed the wall.
Our View: Sorenson was working on a qualification lap and in the first three sessions, he was only about 34th quick. This Young Gun should be avoided in the Dodge Challenger 500. |
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| Earnhardt wins third practice | Friday 5/9, 12:34 PM CT |
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Dale Earnhardt, Jr had the quickest average speed during the third practice session at 172.505 during 29 laps.
Our View: His fastest lap in that session was only 13th best, but Darlington more than any track rewards consistency over raw speed. |
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| Mears fastest in third practice | Friday 5/9, 12:31 PM CT |
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Casey Mears posted the fastest single lap in the third practice session at Darlington Raceway, with a speed of 177.685 mph.
Our View: He has to be tired of getting upstaged by his three teammates, but this is not a track on which drivers typically have breakthrough races. |
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| Green replaces Andretti | Friday 5/9, 11:56 AM CT |
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Jeff Green will attempt to qualify the No. 34 at Darlington instead of John Andretti, while that driver is in Indianapolis trying to put something together for the Indy 500.
Our View: That won't make much difference in this under-funded car, however, and making he show is still an uphill struggle. |
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| Johnson wrecks in third practice | Friday 5/9, 11:21 AM CT |
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A few minutes after Kyle Petty spun in the third practice session at Darlington, Jimmie Johnson slapped the wall. His contact was enough to cause the team to roll out a backup.
Our View: Since this happened before qualification, Johnson will be able to start where he qualifies, but one has to suppose the backup is not quite as strong as the primary car. |
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| Petty spins in third practice | Friday 5/9, 11:09 AM CT |
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Kyle Petty spun by himself almost immediately after the Friday morning session began. He made contact, but it looks like the team will be able to repair the Dodge.
Our View: Petty was one of the slowest drivers on Thursday, and he has to find speed before qualification. |
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