View From The Flagstand: Menard Burns Brickyard

Paul Menard earned his first NASCAR Cup win Sunday at Indianapolis in the Brickyard 400. So far in 2011, four first time winners have graced victory lane at racing's most storied tracks. Menard at Indy, Trevor Bayne in the Daytona 500, Reagan Smith in the Southern 500 at Darlington, and David Ragan earlier this month in the 400 miler at Daytona.

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Paul Menard has been banging around in NASCAR for eight years, and had two top-five finishes prior to moving to RCR this season. Menard now has four top-fives this year, and could make the Chase. His team played a fuel mileage strategy at the end, made one less green flag pit stop, and beat veteran Jeff Gordon to the finish line.

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Reagan Smith had a much needed third place run. Likewise, Jamie McMurray in 4th. Landon Cassill came back from a spin to get a 20th place finish. Top rookie, Andy Lally was 26th on the lead lap at the finish.

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I can't recall the last time there was so much contact on pit road. Or, maybe ESPN was just playing it up because there was little to no contact on the track.

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Something needs to be done about the stock car racing at Indy. The track is not designed for stock cars to race on. The only solution I see would be to use the road course that weaves through the infield and onto sections of the track.

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Steven Wallace! I can't believe that the other drivers, owners, and officials aren't demanding that Rusty take him out of the car. He has ZERO wins in 178 NW starts. He has FIVE top-5's in 178 NW starts. He has ONLY finished on the lead lap 78 times in 178 NW starts.

In Saturday's NW race at the Indy half-mile track Steven hit a parked car. At near full speed. On a straightaway. Several seconds after the caution came out. He is a menace to anything on asphalt. Rusty has spent millions of dollars over the last five or six years to fund this experiment in mediocrity. Try this Rusty; step one, fire Steven. Step two, wait for another owner to hire him.

View From The Flagstand: Newman Takes New Hampshire

On Sunday, at New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Ryan Newman became this season's thirteenth different winner. Newman stretched his fuel mileage just enough to take his U.S. Army Chevy to the winner's circle.

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Newman started from the pole, led the most laps, and earned max points in NHMS's first of two races this year. He moved to eighth in the season points race with this win. With passing on the track difficult, Newman's crew had their driver up front when it mattered most.

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Newman's boss/teammate, Tony Stewart started, and finished, second. Denny Hamlin (3rd) and Joey Logano (4th) gave JGR top efforts at NHMS. Seventh place finisher Bobby Labonte had his best run since the season opening Daytona 500.

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The fuel mileage races. Really... every week? A couple of times a year is okay, but this is getting out of hand.

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Is Jimmie Johnson showing signs of stress? He seemed to be driving on the edge, and using up other cars on Sunday. He hit plenty of cars, then, after he spun out, he put Juan Montoya on blast. His crew cost him plenty of spots during the last pit stop. He threw them under the bus, too, even though he cut through the field to finish fifth.

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At the end of Saturday's Nationwide race at NHMS, Kevin Harvick claimed that NASCAR told him if he so much as touched Kyle Busch's car he would be "parked". This may have meant more if Harvick could have even came close enough to him to wreck Busch.

Is Harvick admitting that he isn't driver enough to beat Busch fair and square? Sure sounded like it. If NASCAR did tell Harvick not to touch Busch's car wouldn't that be exactly what Richard Childress "communicated" to Busch regarding Harvick's car?

View From The Flagstand: Kyle Busch Tops Kentucky

Kentucky Speedway held its first Sprint Cup race Saturday night. One more mile and a half race track on the circuit means one more boring race. Kyle Busch led almost half the total laps, as he proved that "clean air", out front, makes anyone look like Superman.

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Kyle Busch dominated Kentucky Speedway, winning the Cup and Truck Series races, while finishing third in the Nationwide Series event. He made it look easy on Saturday night pulling away to ten second leads over second place at various times during the 400 mile race. It was Busch's third win this year, and he took over the points lead with the win.

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David Reutimann nipped Jimmie Johnson for second place at the finish line for a much welcomed strong result. Brad Keselowski (7) and Kurt Busch (9) led the second and third most laps with their Penske Dodges. RFR's Carl Edwards (5), Matt Kenseth (6), and David Ragan (8) repped Ford well.

YELLOW FLAGS

There were six caution flags. Including a premeditated competition (or lack thereof) yellow early in the going, and three flags for "debris" on the track. It's hard to believe that, on this bumpy asphalt, there was only one wreck. That would be Clint Bowyer during a late race restart.

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Dale Earnhardt Jr was never a factor, again, and a late race flat tire pushed him even farther down the scoring pylon. His 30th place run dropped him to 8th in the points, just 9 ahead of 11th place Tony Stewart. There are only eight races until the Chase, and that stretch does not include a lot of Jr friendly tracks. Not that there are a lot of those to begin with.

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Kentucky Speedway became the biggest joke in NASCAR after over 20,000 fans never made it inside the track due to lack of traffic flow planning and lack of parking for those that actually made it to the track. Five and six hour waits in gridlock were the norm, with thousands giving up still miles from the track. Maybe Bruton and his minions should check out the Derby over in Louisville next May and see firsthand how to move three times as much traffic as his speedway will ever see.

View From The Flagstand: David Ragan Delivers at Daytona

David Ragan drove to his first Cup win Saturday night in Daytona. With the season not yet at the halfway point, he becomes 2011's third first time winner. Ragan joins Trevor Bayne and Reagan Smith as this year's first timers.

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Ragan stayed close to the front in the closing stages of the race, and got some drafting help from fellow RFR racer, Matt Kenseth on his way to the checkers. This popular victory may quell some of the rumors of UPS, and, or, Ragan leaving RFR at year's end. Quiz: When did UPS get their last win (before Ragan's), where, and who was driving? There was also a comical off-track remark that lives in infamy.

GREEN FLAGS

Matt Kenseth knows how to take care of a car, as his 2nd place run shows. Joey Logano has turned his season around after winning the pole last week, winning the NW race here on Friday, and finishing 3rd on Saturday. Kasey Kahne (4th) finally got a decent finish. Kyle Busch was in 29th place before the first, of two, Green, White, Checkered restarts. He bansheed up to a 5th place.

YELLOW FLAGS

It's kind of strange that a few championship winning drivers have not been able to grasp the "lovebug" drafting techniques. I'm looking at you, Greg Biffle, Juan Montoya, and Brad Keselowski. Even stranger when you consider that other less experienced guys like David Gilliland and Reagan Smith are sought out as partners by the likes of Tony Stewart and Kurt Busch.

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Danicamania. Between the ESPN Nationwide announcers and internet marks, I fully expect that the NASCAR Hall of Fame is drawing up plans for a new wing. I will give her credit for holding the gas pedal to the floor, and steering a car around in circles at high speed. Anyone remember the Wrangler car that Jr drove at Daytona last year? The one that ran faster by itself than others could in a draft? Yeah, that one. That's what Danica was driving this year. Now, if only she could hold her line, in NASCAR or Indy Car.

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What exactly is Mark Martin's deal? He is getting old. They were in Florida. Was his turn signal on for 150 laps Saturday night? Going back to the All-Star race in May, he has drove all over cars like they were not even there. Then, afterwards, the Alzheimer's kicks in, and he can't remember that the carnage was all his fault.