Round Table Discussion: 2014 Edition

I know I haven’t been the best writer over the last year. With moving to Virginia and back to Wisconsin has had my head in a spin. BUT, about a week ago, I decided to get back to doing one of the few things I love the most. Writing about NASCAR. Since its start in 2011, the Round Table discussion has always been one of my favorite things to write about. And again since 2011, I have brought in some of my favorite people to help me out with some of the sport’s biggest topics. We’ll cover everything from Rookie Chase Elliott (I had done a spot light article on him as my welcome back last week) to Carl Edward’s departure from Roush. Plus, we give our picks on who we think will be the 2014 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion.  Beware; some of the picks may surprise you.

Let’s look at the panel. Returning for a fourth year are Garrett Beisheim and Steph Piech. These two have been amazing to keep coming back year after year. Returning for his third year is Jason Schultz. I am so glad that all three of them came back without Any hesitation. You’ll get to more about them at the end. Let’s head into the good stuff. The discussion. This past Sunday night, Garrett, Jason, Steph, and I all sat down and discuss the big topic. Let’s take a look:

The Chase format

We all know about the changes that NASCAR made to the Chase. from increasing the number of drivers in to the 'win and in' concept. we've already seen how it's worked, does it work or does it need to be tweaked?

Garrett Beisheim: The chase format was made to model an actual playoff system where the winner takes all in the final race at Homestead. I believe this will be a great system, but we will have to see how long it lasts as it seems NASCAR is always changing something. I also believe this system will be used until a loop-hole is found like last year when Clint Bowyer "intentionally" spun to allow his teammate to get into the chase.

Jason Schultz: The new Chase for the Sprint Cup format is fantastic. The idea of including eliminations, rounds, and a winner take-all finale not only adds excitement, but will make for some of the best racing we have ever seen. Each week will be a thrill and the end of each race will leave fans wanting more. It sounds perfect at the moment. I would only encourage change if it’s obviously needed after how this season's final ten races play out.

Steph Piech: I think it makes the last 10 races the most exciting they have been since the chase was created. It puts the races directly in the drivers’ hands and they decide if they make it or break it. But I agree with Garrett, there will most likely be a loop hole to be found because racers sometimes try to bend the rules a bit. But I think as of right now, it's the best format for the racing and for the drivers

Garrett Beisheim: I believe it could possibly put NASCAR back in the spotlight if we have a surprise championship winner or even just a couple surprise drivers in the final two rounds....,

Samantha Rae: I've watched this sport since before the Chase days and the Chase really helps even out everyone. I like the fact that NASCAR decided to go more towards a football play-off type of way. I would definitely suggest tweaking it. It shouldn't be with the top 30 in points because there are too many races in the first 26 race that could have a winner that nobody would ever think would ever win a race, like Almirola and Allmendinger. It’s good to see first-time drivers in the Chase, but they most likely won't have much success in the Chase.

Chase Elliott

At the age of 18, Chase Elliott is poised to win his first NASCAR championship. Do you think he's ready to win it all at such a young age?

Steph Piech: I'm not sure an 18 year old has had as much poise and talent as Chase has had this year. He doesn’t let anything deter from his focus of winning. He knows what it takes to win and how to do it the right way at only 18. He has a good head on his shoulder and the right person (his dad) in his corner. I think he's ready. Even though Logano was hyped up when he was 18, he didn’t have the poise or focus Chase does. Chase wants it bad, and he has already proven he can handle the pressure

Garrett Beisheim: I believe it may be a bit too early for him to win a championship, but he has proven that he is capable and deserving of it. I do believe that he should still spend 2-3 more seasons in nationwide because of what happened to Joey Logano. If he moves up that fast, it just becomes a lot of un-needed pressure for the younger kids; therefore he should remain in the Nationwide series for a couple more years.

Jason Schultz: The next few months will be very telling for Elliott. His inexperience could pose a threat as any mistake while chasing a title is costly. However, every challenge thrown his way this season, he's conquered. He's proven not having raced at a track before doesn't matter. He is a quick learner and that will help him close in on the title. Unless the No. 9 NAPA Auto Parts team gets caught up in a rookie mistake, I expect them to take home the championship.

Steph Piech: I do agree he needs to stay in nationwide another year though. Let him rack up two years of wins in Nationwide, and he will be ready to be a cup contender!

Garrett Beisheim: I agree with Jason, these next two months will show us what Chase and the No. 9 team can do and how well they can handle the pressure of possibly winning the championship with chase in his rookie season.

Samantha Rae: we always compare young drivers to Joey Logano's early cup career flop because let's all face it. Joey's time at JGR in Cup has to be the worst I have seen in a long time. I don't think Chase is going to flop like Joey. Joey was never really a threat for the championship in the Nationwide series. I think Chase has the talent and maturity to win it all this year. he's got the backing of possibly the best owner in NASCAR and he's got veteran teammate to lean on.

Samantha Rae: With all the hype of Greg Ives going to Hendrick to be Dale's crew chief, it never once slowed that 9 team down

Garrett Beisheim: I believe the only reason Joey "flopped" was because of the added pressure of filling a two-time series champion’s seat. It can't be easy just moving up to cup, but even harder to fill a seat of a guy who has won two championships with the team.

Samantha Rae: look at Chase though. everyone thinks he's going to take over the 24 car

Jason Schultz: Ives' experience with helping Jimmie Johnson compete for titles will benefit Elliott and help make up for some of his lack of experience.

Garrett Beisheim: But if the 24 team wins the championship this year, that gives Gordon another 4-5 years at HMS.

Steph Piech: I agree! Joey is one of my favorites but he being Tony's replacement paired with lack of experience wasn’t going to provide him with what he needed to truly have a tremendous rookie season

Samantha Rae: and then there's the fact that Kasey's contract ends in 2015. Does Rick stick with Kahne or does he go with Chase. I want Kasey to stay at Hendrick

Tony Stewart

This is going to be a two parter, sorta. Tony Stewart and the incident that brought the new rule. was the new rule good and what do you think should be exceptions to the rule?

Garrett Beisheim: Honestly there shouldn't even have to be a rule in place, this is more of a "common sense" type of thing in my opinion.

Jason Schultz: NASCAR had to act after the situation and the rule they came up with will get their point across. I only think drivers should be penalized if they ignore what safety officials tell them or unsafely approach the track. However, I don't expect the rule to be broken often.

Steph Piech: there shouldn’t be a rule but in the heat of the moment, the drivers don’t think about common sense and they do stupid and ridiculous things that they really don’t fully look at until after it happens. sometimes common sense things have to become a rule in order for drivers to start thinking of their actions when they're heated

Samantha Rae: I had said that two weeks ago during the race at Bristol. these drivers should have the common sense not to walking towards at a 3400 pound racecar going 70 miles an hour under caution. Look at Denny Hamlin after being wrecked by Harvick battling for the lead. should he have gone up and thrown his HANS device at Harvick, probably not. we didn't see a penalty for it, so I guess that's okay?

Jason Schultz: I agree with Garrett, it’s a common sense thing but NASCAR had to address the situation and the rule probably won't come into play that much at all.

Samantha Rae: 99% of the time when the driver gets out of the car, they go straight to either pit road or the medical vehicle. If NASCAR felt like they needed to address the issue, then by all means, go ahead

Steph Piech: yeah I agree. now that it's in fine print and it's an official rule, even though Denny got out and threw his helmet, we'll see less of these actions... or, for the next one who does it, NASCAR may make an example out of them depending in the circumstances

Garrett Beisheim: I don't think NASCAR penalized Hamlin because was still standing by his car, and the safety officials had already got to his car. Therefore that doesn't really break that rule...

Samantha Rae: it was just actually the HANS device and he hit Harvick's car, which you really don't see guy actually hitting their target, except for Stewart's two-handed helmet toss last year

which is still my favorite object toss

2015 schedule changes

next topic. 2015 schedule changes. good changes? bad changes? favorite change?

Garrett Beisheim: Well, I would say it's good, but I wanted more. 2015 would have been the ideal year to really change the schedule, add a different track or two and change up the tracks in the chase. It would have been the perfect time since now FOX and NBC will be taking over the coverage for the season. I don't really see the need for the extra off-weekend, just makes the season even longer than it needs to be. My favorite change has to be the fact that they moved Phoenix later in the season, and moved Atlanta to the second track on the schedule. It's the start of a schedule change that I wanted but it's not enough

Samantha Rae: I'm still waiting for them to change up the Chase. the fact that all 10 races in the Chase are still the same. I want variety! I LOVE the fact that Darlington is back on Labor Day. It's the Southern 500. I'm glad that they made changes, but I don't think it was enough.

Steph Piech: my favorite change is bringing labor day weekend back to Darlington. It was a tradition for a long time and I think bringing it back is the best thing to do. I think it will bring more excitement to the weekend and to close out the summer season of the schedule. I think as a 50/50 good-bad change is the west coast sweep for 3 races. The good change is, as they've said, for the fans. They can take a month long vacation and go on a NASCAR road trip after saving up all winter (well, let's just say hypothetically). however, for the race teams I think this first time doing it will take its toll. But, I think there are a few tracks that have proven they deserve a second date, and haven’t received it yet.

Jason Schultz: The 2015 schedule is interesting. While fans have called for change over the years, the adjustments made weren't necessarily the ones fans wanted. I hope one day the tracks included are shaken up, but as for where we will go next season, I like it for the most part. It will be fun going to Atlanta for the second race of the season and staying in the south to kick-off the season. Moving Bristol to April is a great move which will benefit the track and fan attendance. Shaking up the schedule at the end of June is necessary to give NBC a big kick-off in Daytona but what puzzles me is why there is an off-week between Michigan and Sonoma when a week off after Sonoma would be a good break between the two networks' coverage. Moving Darlington to Labor Day Weekend will return prestige to the speedway and create an electrifying atmosphere. I'm excited to see how everything plays out once 2015 arrives.

Steph Piech: I agree with Sam! change up the chase! add a road course! bring I. road America or some track that NASCAR, as a league or these series, doesn’t race very often to get teams to think strategy and throw them off their game a bit

Samantha Rae: I have want Road America in the Cup Series for like three years! it's my home track!!

Garrett Beisheim: I want 4 road courses on the schedule with one of them in the chase

Steph Piech: I think that would be fun! I’m not a huge fan of road courses, but I do think we need more of them to have a full variety for drivers to truly show they are the best at every type of track

hell, let's add a dirt track too

Carl Edwards

Earlier this year, Carl Edwards announced that he was leaving Roush Fenway. everyone wondered where he was going to go. Then, just a few weeks ago, Edwards announced that he was joining Joe Gibbs Racing for the 2015 season. was this the right decision by not only Edwards to move, but JGR to expand to four teams?

Jason Schultz: Edwards' move was the best one for his career. He gave it a good go at Roush-Fenway Racing but just couldn't win a title. Changing things up will greatly benefit him. Out of all teams in the garage, JGR is the one that could succeed most with a four-car team. If they find more speed, I expect all four teams to be competitive next season.

Garrett Beisheim: Seeing the state of RFR right now, I believe Carl Edwards made a smart move, if he wants to win a championship; he can't win it at RFR right now. now what made him think he can win it at JGR confuses me. SHR expanded to 4 cars and seems to only have 1-2 cars running competitively every week. Maybe Carl thinks he can do what Kenseth did his first year at JGR and that is win, win and win. But with Carl joining a brand new team, there will be growing pains. JGR can't even run 2 of the 3 cars competitively, let alone 4

Samantha Rae: I for one was very surprised that Carl decided to leave Roush Fenway, but Roush isn't the same power house that they were just a few years ago. Carl decided that it was the best move for his career and his did it before it was too late. Carl had said that he's going to give it 100% the rest of the year and try to win the title for Jack. a few teams have tried the four car thing, so it's going to be an interesting thing to see JGR try and do it

Steph Piech: I think Carl has dealt with the same thing over and over again and in order for his career to move forward, he needs a change of scenery with another great team with all the resources Roush has. I think it's a perfect match for both of them. Gibbs wants another championship, and Carl is still hungry for his first. The only thing that scares me is what happened with Matt last year compared to this year. Carl is a top caliber driver, and maybe his experiences and his opinions will help progress all 4 teams into chase contention next year

Samantha Rae: the strength of Roush has fallen off in the last few years. unless Jack makes a change, they aren't going to be around much longer

Steph Piech: unfortunately, I agree. it doesn’t seem like they have the top tier equipment they had a few years ago when Carl was challenging for the title

Garrett Beisheim: Jack needs to either downsize and work from the ground up again, or try to attract some top-drivers over to RFR to help build the team up

Samantha Rae: even when Matt was still there. something is off with their Cup program. even their Nationwide program isn't the same as it used to be

Steph Piech: I think with Carl leaving he needs to focus on the 16 and 17 and get them into contention before adding another driver so I agree with that as well

Samantha Rae: Trevor is going to be full-time in the 6 car next year

Steph Piech: well still... I love Trevor... but in order for RF to get back to its full potential, he has to do something maybe with him being full time, they'll be able to find some speed or maybe get help from the race team alliance group

Samantha Rae: what gets me is the fact that Roush and Penske both use the same engines in Roush Yates Engines, so it has to be somewhere else they are having problems.

Samantha Rae: one quick question. Roush: sink or swim without Edwards? I say sink if they can't find speed

Jason Schultz: I say barely swim. They won't go off the map completely but it'll be a battle to get one car into the Chase.

Garrett Beisheim: Sink if they don't get it figured out by next year, you can't tell how good a driver is if the equipment isn't good and the team isn't up to speed

Samantha Rae: Biffle shouldn't have made the Chase, made it by the skin of his teeth

Steph Piech: I agree. they don’t really have a standout top 15 driver anymore once Carl leaves. sink.

NASCAR Power House

Who is the new Power house? is it still Hendrick or have JGR and Penske come to spoil the Hendrick party?

Garrett Beisheim: I would put Penske up there with HMS, even though the team is half the size; they definitely have shown that they can both compete for the championship

Steph Piech: Penske is definitely proving they are two of the teams they have to watch out for every week. Both drivers have the talent and equipment to compete for the championship. Penske is smart in fielding only 2 cars so both the teams get equal equipment, and not one being more superior over the other, as we can sometimes tell week to week with Hendrick and JGR

Jason Schultz: Based off of what has happened this year, it’s still Hendrick Motorsports. They have been arguably better than ever with three of their teams making it to victory lane three times. I expect them to compete for at least half of the finalist spots in Miami and take home the title.

Steph Piech: Hendrick is still on top, but they have to look in the rearview mirror because Penske is right on their bumper

Samantha Rae: I agree that Hendrick is still the power house, but Penske and JGR both have proven that they can hang with those big boys. Adding Logano to the roster has proven to be one of the best things Roger has done. Going to Penske has also been Logano's best career decision.

Garrett Beisheim: JGR can compete but they're nowhere close to where Penske and HMS compete every week

Trucks and Nationwide Series

I wanna talk about Trucks and Nationwide and decrease in Cup driver winners. is the talent in the lower series better than it's been in recent years?

Jason Schultz: With the youth movement ongoing throughout the sport, I definitely think the talent in both series' has increased. It’s fun to watch the young drivers doing well and before long, they will keep up in the wins column with the veterans.

Steph Piech: I think the flood of younger drivers with Kyle Larson, Ryan Blaney, and obviously, Chase Elliott, has improved the racing in both series. I think all three, and the other rookies as well, have spent more time in their previous series to make sure they had that experience for two of NASCAR's top series

Garrett Beisheim: there seems to have been an increase in young talent in the lower series. they have shown that they can compete with the cup.

Samantha Rae: Kyle Busch won 46% of the races in 2013. This year? 12%. of course that stat was from a few weeks ago at Bristol, but look how dramatic that decrease is. of course Kyle is still an angry little gremlin when it comes to losing. but 12%!

Garrett Beisheim: Chase Elliott and Darrell Wallace Jr are the two that come to mind, they can compete week-in-week-out for the win and they race like they have been in the sport for years.

Steph Piech: I think cup guys like Busch have taught the young guns what they need to do, which is ultimately one of the reasons that cup guys haven’t totally been banned from NW. the NW and NCTS help the young guys compete with cup guys and develop and fine tune their talent to their benefit

Samantha Rae: it's crazy to think that Busch's winning percentage has decreased as much as it did. that goes to show how well this new batch of young drivers is

The Chase

I think we all know what's left. The Chase for the Sprint Cup. Keselowski, Gordon, Earnhardt Jr., Logano, Johnson, Harvick, Edwards, Ky. Busch, Ku. Busch, Hamlin, Allmendinger, Almirola, Kahne, Kenseth, Newman, Biffle. contenders and pretenders. who's a threat and who's not

Garrett Beisheim: The 43, 47, 16 and probably the 5 won't make it past the first round; I see the 24, 88, 4, 48, 2, 22 and the 20 as being the true contenders

Samantha Rae: I think Kahne could possibly make it at least out of the first round. he's been more consistent than Alimrola, Allmendinger, Newman, and Biffle.

Steph Piech: for me, the top 3 who have been the most consistent all season have been Gordon, Logano, and Keselowski. so I think coming down to Homestead it will be these three along with either Junior or Harvick. Allmendinger, Biffle, Newman and Almirola I don’t think will make it too far because they haven’t had that consistent top 10 finished week in and week out. Kasey I think will make it through to the contender round and have another good run at Charlotte

Samantha Rae: Kyle has been tanking lately and Hamlin hasn't been any better.

Garrett Beisheim: Newman has been quietly finishing top 12 every single week, while the no. 5 team isn't as consistent, and then Biffle's team is either hit-or-miss every week, his car is either top 5 or a 20th place car, you never know what that team is going to bring to the track Kyle and Denny haven't been running well lately so unless they can step up their game another level for the chase, they won't make it past the second round

Samantha Rae: taking Bristol, Daytona, and last night's 17th place finish, Kasey has finish no worse than 15th for the last few months. this has been one of Kasey's worst season, but I think he may be consistent enough to make it to at the high top eight

Jason Schultz: The biggest threats will come from Keselowski, Gordon, Logano, Johnson and Harvick. I believe they will all make it far and have a great shot at the title. Earnhardt Jr., Edwards and Kenseth will be mid-pack and still pose a threat. The pretenders this season have to be Kyle Busch, Kurt Busch, Hamlin, Allmendinger, Almirola and Kahne. I have not seen them run consistently enough to expect a title run. Overall, I anticipate a Team Penske or Hendrick Motorsports driver raising the trophy in Homestead-Miami.

Garrett Beisheim: I believe 2 HMS cars will be super competitive, the first being the 48 since he is so good in these final races, and the second will come down between either the 24 or the 88 both of them have shown that they can win like the 48 but I believe only two of the cars in the final round will be from HMS

Samantha Rae: I'm going to pick Gordon over Junior. Gordon has been much more consistent than his teammate

Final Four

Final four heading into Homestead? Champion?

Garrett Beisheim: 48, 24, 4, 22

Jason Schultz: I say the 48-4-2-88

Steph Piech: 24, 2, 22, 4

Samantha Rae: 22, 48, 24, 2

Steph Piech: I just see a hunger in Jeff more than I haven’t seen in past years. He really wants it

Garrett Beisheim: I think a Penske car has the best shot at knocking down the 48, but the 48 will still prevail at homestead

Samantha Rae: I'm actually going to go with Logano. I've seen something in him this past season that I have never seen in him before. He's more confident and I think he is definitely the dark horse in this Chase

Jason Schultz: The No. 88 team is driven to win it all and Steve Letarte is going to give it everything he's got for a chance to becoming a championship-winning crew chief before transitioning to the TV booth.

Official Championship picks:

Jason Schultz: Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Steph Piech: Kevin Harvick

Garrett Beisheim: Jimmie Johnson

Samantha Rae: Joey Logano

I’m glad these three decided to come again and be a part of something like amazing and insightful! We cold have talked and talked about NASCAR for hours, but we didn't have that much time.  We had some laughs (I called Kyle Busch an angry little gremlin), we got down to the serious stuff (A little bit), and we all talked about something all four of us are passionate about! I hope that, with everything that we talked about and discussed, everyone can get a clear picture of that fact that this sport is amazing, complicated, and definitely not perfect. And I thank you for reading. Stay tuned for more from all of us in the near future.

Get to know the panel!

Samantha Rae: 23-year-old small-time writer and avid NASCAR fan since the mid 1990’s. Kasey Kahne and Ryan Truex fan. Slowly working my way to North Carolina and a shot at a job in NASCAR. I went to my first race at the age of 22, last October at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Since then, I’ve seen races at three different tracks, seen six races, and have met 15 drivers. My other hobbies include rooting for the New York Giants and the Philadelphia Flyers. You can find me on twitter @HurriKahne_5. Like my Facebook page NASCAR Racing Is A Sport!

Stephanie Piech: 22 year-old motorsport and NFL fan. Joey Logano fan. Carolina Panthers and the Pittsburgh Steelers are my football teams. Redhead. College graduate: Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, and triple minors in marketing, sociology, and business administration. Currently working on my dream for a career in a sports marketing or communication office. Now that I’ve moved to South Carolina, I'm becoming a regular at Charlotte Motor Speedway and Bank of America stadium. Lover of dogs and good music.

Jason Schultz: Racing has been my passion ever since I was 7-years old. Now at 16, I aspire to work in the public relations field of NASCAR. I hope to attend college in the sport’s hub – Charlotte, NC – in the near future and move one step closer to achieving my dream. I have been writing about the sport I love for almost three seasons. You can find my work on Turn4RacingNews.com along with PopularSpeed.com. In addition, I contribute to different social media outlets including being social media manager on @SpeedwayMedia. Last May, I was fortunate enough to be a part of the Drive for Autism Celebrity Golf Tournament in Delaware during Dover race weekend. Many NASCAR personalities came out to support the great cause and I was able to provide social media updates throughout the day. Just like any fan, I enjoy attending races. I have been to events at Dover International Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway, Daytona International Speedway, Watkins Glen International, Bristol Motor Speedway, Darlington Raceway and Pocono Raceway. Follow me on twitter @NASCARJason to stay up-to-date on my travels, experiences, articles and much more.

Garrett Beisheim: I have been following the sport for a dozen years now. I'm a fan of Tony Stewart and the whole Stewart-Haas Racing team. I live in upstate/western New York just an hour a half from the road course of Watkins Glen. I went to the glen this year and witnessed AJ Allmendinger lock himself into the chase for the sprint cup. I am currently a senior in high school and am thinking about pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering either here in NY or in NASCAR city of Charlotte, NC. Along with NASCAR my other interests/hobbies are soccer and hockey, GO BUFFALO!