Last year, right after Kasey Kahne’s win at Darlington in
the Truck Series, I came out with a round table discussion of what does it mean
to Kasey’s momentum. This year, Kasey comes back into the round table, along
with AJ Allmendinger. Last year, four people helped me discuss the issues. This
year, two of them come back with two new people. Let’s quick meet the panel:
Samantha Rae: Yours
truly. Writer for Sam’s Thoughts at http://www.rockmelikeahurrikahne5.blogspot.com.
Founder of NASCAR Racing IS a Sport! on Facebook and I currently run @TheBayneWagon
on twitter. Been a NASCAR fan since the mid 90’s. Diehard Kasey Kahne fan. Been
since 2006. Currently working on getting into University of Wisconsin-Green Bay
to major in journalism. I hope to be a NASCAR writer in the next few years. Follow
me on twitter at @HurriKahne_5
David Folz is a publisher
of two articles in newspapers, the Watertown Daily Times in Watertown, WI and
The Herald-Progress in Richmond, VA. Graduate of University of
Wisconsin-Whitewater in Broadcast Journalism class of 2011. Cover College
football for dailyshootout.com. follow him at @folzybear16
Stephanie Piech is from
Connecticut. been an avid NASCAR fan since 2003, and the only races she’s been
to have been at Dover Downs. have a
couple drivers that i always root for, but right now her top favorite is Joey
Logano. Her twitter handle is @stephisahotmess
She used to write for
a blog a few years ago she started. You can find her blog posts at http://thefinishlinebystephpiech.blogspot.com/
Garrett Beisheim lives
in upstate New York. Racing is his favorite sport, and hockey is a close
second. He has been to Watkins Glen three times and his favorite driver is Tony
Stewart. He’s not 100% sure on what I want to do when he gets out of school,
but he wants to be involved with NASCAR somehow. He currently have he own blog http://racingtothecheckered.blogspot.com/
and if you want to talk to him. you can follow him on twitter and he will
follow back almost immediately @Gman1439
Jason Schultz’s dream
is one day to be a NASCAR reporter. Currently 14 and doing all he can to reach
that goal and doing so by discussing the sport I love. He’s currently a NASCAR
writer for multiple sites including SpeedwayMedia.com and StartNParkBlog.com. He
became a NASCAR fan in 2005. His favorite driver then was Ryan Newman. He’s
also liked Kyle Busch. He’s been to races at Dover, New Hampshire, Daytona, Watkins
Glen and soon Bristol! He’s very excited to attend his first Bristol night race
this August. He started his own blog http://www.Turn4RacingNews.com
in December of 2011 and he has been keeping fans up to date on all NASCAR news
and throwing a creative twist in as well. follow him on twitter at
@Nascar_Jason_.
Now that everyone has met my panel, let’s get down to
business. The first topic. What do you all think about AJ Allmendinger’s
suspension? (this was before the indefinite suspension.)
Steph Piech: I
think NASCAR is taking too long to evaluate the second sample... if they really
wanted to get it all worked out for both parties
Samantha Rae: well
AJ was the one who chose the test date for his B sample so it's not just NASCAR
David Folz: To
me, A.J.'s suspension means a lot of things. In a nutshell however it means
NASCAR's drug policy does not target anyone, despite what some may want to
believe. Their percentage is 100 percent (counting the top 3 series) because
they have Jeremy Mayfield, and before that Shane Hmiel, who called NASCAR on
saving his life. I found it shocking though that A.J. did take something,
regardless of what it is. If it is something like a cough medicine or
supplement, then really he should have looked at the labels. He has no one to
blame on this but himself. Assuming that A.J's second test comes back the same
as the first, he's probably as good as done as far as a Sprint Cup ride. But we
can also go through what I will call the Ryan Braun trials of a possible false
positive and if that happens, both sides have some serious explaining to do.
Samantha Rae: it
could have definitely have been a false positive. we may never actually know
David Folz: that
happens, A.J's season is already practically over because he'll miss probably
three races, if I am NASCAR, while you don't want a guy to fail a drug test,
you almost hope they do for the sake of if he comes back and nothing is in the
system you have a Public Relations nightmare waiting to happen
Jason Schultz: I
think it'll take a long shot for him to test negative on the b sample but I
don't think the b sample comes back positive. The little that I know AJ he
doesn't seem like a guy who would jeopardize everything to enhance his
performance.
David Folz: right
that is a true point Jason. His problem is that first test failed so he's
really in a deep hole, and there have really been two reversals of fortune in
these (both in baseball) but if AJ's the 3rd false positive, all you know what
breaks loose in the NASCAR HQ
Garrett Beisheim:
working off of david’ oops working off of david's post about AJ, yea, AJ's
season is over, and if it does come back negative i say there will be some
problems between NASCAR and AJ
Okay, here’s the second topic. With Kasey Kahne’s win at New
Hampshire, what does this do to the wildcard chase? As of right now, Kasey
currently holds that number one wildcard spot with six weeks.
Steph Piech: i
think Kasey's win will help him a lot! he's got great momentum these past few
months and i think it's definitely helped his and his team's confidence! And i
know the next couple of races play right into his hand because he's pretty good
on all of them and are Kasey type tracks.
David Folz: oh
the Wild Card what to make of it except it is totally screwed up this year and
will be if that 24 car decides to put a full race together and win. Kasey's
second win practically assures him a lock into the Chase since he's on a roll
and Tony Stewart decides to show up every other race. For Kasey he shouldn't
let up, for he can play a huge role in getting the cup. For this to be
completely flipped upside down either Carl Edwards should get to being good
this year, Joey Logano/Ryan Newman shock everyone by winning, or as I pointed
earlier that Gordon wins. And if Gordon wins, this race for the second wildcard
gets so upside down its insane. Arguably other than Kahne, Gordon has been the
best of the guys from 11-20 in the standings since Edwards hasn't done
anything, Busch's motors can't last, Logano and Newman don't know how to stay
away from each other and Kahne is so far away from anyone he's winning in his
own area code. Unless any of Busch, Logano and Newman win anything and chances
are they may not do it, you have to think Gordon and Kahne could almost be the
favorites because Gordon has won so much at Indy, at Atlanta, Bristol, and
tracks leading up to the Chase. Only Kyle Busch is Gordon's biggest threat.
Jason Shultz: KK's
second wild card victory basically assures his spot in the chase. No 2 wild
card contending drivers are likely to win 3 or more races in the next 7 (6 since
this conversation happened). Kyle has a great shot at getting that second wild
card. Edward's probably won't be able to do anything with a new chief and I
don't think JoLo or Newman can win one of these next seven races or past Kyle
in the standings. Kyle has the experience in getting into the chase and doing
well so experience will pay off. I think JG's waited to long to make a move. He
might get 1 win but 2-3 is very unlikely. He needs to become more consistent to
start off the seasons
David Folz: Very
true, it really comes down to if Kyle's equipment can stay together and if it
does, and he wins another one of these, he'll be in.
Garrett Beisheim:
I Say unless one of the other wildcard drivers goes on a winning spree, Kasey
Kahne will be in the chase, leaving all the others fighting for one more spot.
I don't think Joey Logano will be able to do too much, if he does, it will be
when they go back to Pocono. I think Newman's best shot at winning will be at
Michigan. If Kyle and his team can race well, Kyle has a shot at winning
everywhere, in my opinion. I think he will be a big threat when the cup series
heads to Watkins Glen.
Samantha Rae: people
are going to have a tough time beating Kasey at this point in the season. two
wins and only 66 points out of the top 10 with 7 races left.(six since the
conversation happened). I think he can
get into the Chase WITHOUT a wildcard spot. he's been too good in this stretch
to not make it in. as far as the wildcard spots, If Kasey gets into the top 10,
will be Kyle Busch and I don't know who will be the other one. I think Carl is
going to miss the Chase. you have to win and be consistent and that team is
not. I don't think Chad Norris is going to help that team much before the Chase
starts. Joey Logano has a shot, but he needs to kick his ass in gear if he
wants to make it into his first ever Chase berth. I think he can do it, IF he
wins again and if he stays consistent like Kasey.
David Folz: That
is a fair thing but lets assume even with the great run with Kasey recently
that the top 10 is set, barring a huge swing of everything happening. Its not
far-fetched to say Kasey can get into the top 10 but its really unlikely to
happen. Assuming Kasey also has one spot locked up, the key comes down to three
things: 1. Does Kyle win somewhere he has dominated (Bristol) or does he falter
like he has for the last 2 months? 2. Even with Chad Norris being the guy up
top for Carl, do they gel or has Edwards already thrown out the white flag on
his year, acknowledging his year is practically done unless someone in the top
10 drops out? 3. He had struggled in every way besides his car spontaneously
combusting all over the place to start the year, don't discount Jeff Gordon for
the simple fact of he nearly won at Indy and Bristol and did win at Atlanta,
he's still not out of it yet, can he throw a wrench into this whole ordeal?
These next 7 races will be a lot of fun for anyone to watch.
A day after we had finished the round table, the news of AJ’s
indefinite suspension came out. Once again, I took it to the round table.
Samantha Rae: okay,
since the new came out today while I was at work, what are your thoughts on the
indefinite suspension on AJ Allmendinger?
Garrett Beisheim:
I think AJ will get back rather quickly, this is nothing compared to Mayfield's
problem. I will still stand behind him, I don't see a big problem with a
"stimulant". Sure you don't want someone drugged driving a stock car
at 200mph but if it is just exceeded the limit NASCAR allows then I don't think
its a big deal. But the NASCAR rulebook sets things straight, so we will just
have to see what will happen to AJ. This will definitely screw up his career,
but if he can come back fast enough, he might be able to save some of it.
Jason Schultz: I
think AJ will take the road to recovery in this situation. But he will never be
in as good of equipment as he was in with Penske ever again because of this.
This killed his career. He went from being a good guy to a bad guy. He might of
accidentally taken the drugs but he wasn't careful about it so he will suffer
the consequences. I was hoping this wouldn't happen but whatever the little bit
of illegal drug he took, it killed his career.
David Folz: Well
A.J. Allmendinger is done...sad but true. If he is stupid he'll try the
Mayfield approach of being an idiot about it. Overall, he's done as a top
driver. Maybe someone gives him a chance after going through the drug rehab
stuff but really we are wishing on shooting stars if he is going to be put into
even a decent NASCAR ride again.
Samantha Rae: I
don’t think AJ is done. I know that he’s had two failed drug tests, but i
think, with the rehab program, AJ will be back in NASCAR. Not this season, but
next. The program is at minimum, 6 months, so we all know he won’t be back this
season. AJ has the talent to race in NASCAR, I just think he needs to get
things straight before coming back.
Steph Piech: obviously,
it's not something he wanted to have happen because it definitely not good for
him or for the team. However, by him saying he's going into the recovery
program is a major step for him and NASCAR. If and when he comes back i don't
know if he'll be able to land a top ride that he had before the whole incident.
He's a driver with a lot of potential but many of his fans will never know what
his future with Penske could've held.
There is so much we could have talked about, but it would
have been never ending. All we can really do right now is watch to see if our
predictions are right or wrong. Until next time…
