Roush Fenway Racing
#16, Greg Biffle
% Chance of making the Chase... 75
+ Capable of ripping off a win streak.
- Now the low man at RFR.
& Still has three years left on contract.
* Sponsor, 3M is also on board for three more years.
#17, Matt Kenseth
% Chance he makes the Chase... 90.
+ Always makes the Chase.
- Races for points instead of wins.
& Vickers isn't here to push him around.
* New sponsors include Best Buy.
#99, Carl Edwards
% Chance he makes the Chase... 100.
+ Has a shot at victory every week.
- Dwells on past incidents a bit too much.
& Poised to be a multi-time Champion.
* The next big thing?
Richard Petty Motorsports
#9, Marcos Ambrose
% Chance of making the Chase... 25.
+ Best road racer in NASCAR.
- RPM needs to pick it up on the ovals.
& A very interesting personality.
* Top Gun at RPM.
#43, Aric Almirola
% Chance of making the Chase... 0
+ Likable enough.
- Better drivers were available for this ride.
& Only has a one year contract.
* New sponsors include Smithfield Hams.
Wood Brothers Racing
#21, Trevor Bayne
% Chance he makes the Chase... 0
+ Future superstar.
- Needs to be racing with a full time team.
& Only has sponsorship for half the races.
* Wood Brothers good for about one win every ten years.
Penske Racing
#2, Brad Keselowski
% Chance of making the Chase... 90.
+ Awesome driving talent.
- A little more experience and he will be hard to beat, anywhere.
& Has a great attitude.
* One of two full time Dodge rides in Cup.
#22, AJ Allmendinger
% Chance he makes the Chase... 40.
+ Best equipment he's ever had.
- One year to get it done.
& This team wins races every year.
* This car was stout at Daytona last February.
Gene,
ReplyDeleteI'm intrigued by Brad Keselowski and his crew chief Paul Wolfe. This just might be the team that bypasses your seeming lock in the Chase (Cousin Carl) and actually becomes the next big thing... Brad's test being not to fall into the same trap that another immensely talented driver we both love to follow, that being intimidated into making absolutely stupid mistakes... I think it's a game of forming alliances among the other drivers and Brad seems to have that ability.
I'd really like to see Marcos figure out the ovals and make it into the Chase but I wonder about RPM...
Thanks Gene!
I'll be interested to see how the Roush cars run this year with a smaller operation. RCR does well with less cars, might that be the case with Roush-Fenway this year?
ReplyDeleteDwindy... I doubt Penske has the tech resources to keep up with the RFR cars. That will hurt BK somewhat. Also, Carl has about 10 teammates (every Ford is a RFR car) to help him. BK only has one other Dodge on the track. No doubt Kez has the talent, but seems more streaky than Carl.
ReplyDeleteJM... RFR is not really that much smaller. They are building cars and engines for every Ford team in Sprint Cup. Losing Ragan can't hurt, though. lol
ReplyDeleteWill be interesting to see how BK does as "lead" driver - he really relied on Kurt's input on setups in the past. BK and AJ seem to be gelled already and having great communication - gotta count for something even if neither of them know what they are talking about! LOL AJ should do well with the good equipment and stellar crew.
ReplyDeleteI am loving Kenseth more and more everyday...sigh, I dont really have room for another fav driver!